AS201 Smoke & Mirrors
by Star24
Summary: The start of an alternate S2. Takes place at the time of DT but things are different (ML) COMPLETE
1. Prologue

**Smoke & Mirrors by Star24**

**Disclaimer: **_Dark Angel and its characters are property of Twentieth Century Fox and James Cameron and Charles Eglee. This original story is property and copyright 2003 Star24._

**Author's Note:  **_I've been working on an alternate S2 for a while now. This is just the start of what may be a series taking Dark Angel where it might have gone in S2 if not for the actions of the suits, the wankers as JC so eloquently called them recently…_

**___________________________________________________________________**

**A Military Base somewhere in Washington State**

In a small office, a woman with short, feathered blonde hair sat behind a desk staring at the girl standing at attention in front of her.  The girl was of average height, slender, almost skinny, with long dark hair.  She was dressed in military issue camouflage pants and a grey t-shirt.  After long minutes the woman spoke.

"State your designation." Her voice was soft, yet there was something chilling about the tone. That and the look in her icy pale blue eyes.

"X5-452, ma'am," the girl responded staring straight ahead.

"That's right. I'm glad to see you finally got that into your head." She waited a beat. "What else have you gotten into your head,_ 452_?"

"Nothing, ma'am." 

"Ah yes, the little trick that Lydecker taught you of forgetting information. We'll just have to work on that some more. Won't we?"  The last words were spoken with an emphasis that lent them a sinister air. The girl showed no response, simply staring straight ahead impassively. The woman watched for a moment, "Report to de-briefing. Perhaps this time we'll get some useful information out of you   Dismissed." 

The girl saluted and left the room, leaving the woman staring thoughtfully after her. After a moment she picked up the phone on her desk and punched in some numbers.

"X5-452 is on her way. I want her dosage increased.  We need her re-indoctrination completed as soon as possible.  And while you're at it I want that memory block broken. Do what ever you have to, I need her operational. There's a special assignment coming up and I think she just might be the perfect one for it."

**Manticore, Cell Block 18**

Max lay back on the cot in her cell, hands behind her head.  There was a swish as the observation panel in the door was opened and the guard on duty peered in.

"Lights out, 452." 

"Whatever." She didn't even glance at him.

"You really oughta try being nice to me. I might could get you some extra goodies if you were."

"You have any idea how old and tired that line is? If I was interested in being 'nice' to one of you creeps it sure wouldn't be one who couldn't even come up with an original pickup line." 

"Yeah? Just wait until you're in heat. I've seen what you X5 bitches are like. You'll change your tune and be beggin' for it then," he sneered. There was a sharp snap as the window was closed and the lights went out, leaving Max in blackness.  

She sighed and closed her eyes, trying for some sleep to pass away the long hours before dawn, and the relative freedom of the training grounds. The guard's words brought back the memories of her last heat cycle and she let herself drift off into thoughts of Logan Cale and what had come so close to happening between them just before she was re-captured by Manticore. If Zack hadn't burst into Logan's penthouse and interrupted them, the feelings they had both kept so closely under guard for the first year of their relationship would have finally found an expression.  As it was, Logan's words to her just before she left with Zack and set in motion the events that had led to her being here in this cell, were what she hung on to in order to stay strong. She repeated them in her head as a mantra whenever things threatened to overwhelm her.

_"We have all the time in the world."_ There had been a promise in those words and in his hand as he gently squeezed hers. Most of all there had been a promise in his beautiful eyes as they held hers captive that long ago night. Max was determined to return to Logan and hold him to that promise, however long it took her.

Unfortunately, she knew she now had to use the Manticore memory techniques to forget Logan and his words. Tired of her lack of progress with Max, Renfro had ordered her into heavy re-conditioning.  Max had heard the stories about the treatments they used and she had known her time was up. She couldn't take a chance on betraying Logan to Manticore so this was the last night she would be able to allow herself to remember him. If she was lucky she'd find a way to escape, but she wasn't willing to risk Logan in the meantime. She'd have to trust that once she got out things would somehow come right.

**End of Prologue**

**To be continued…**


	2. Chapter One

**Smoke & Mirrors by Star24**

**Disclaimer: **_Dark Angel and its characters are property of Twentieth Century Fox and James Cameron and Charles Eglee. This original story is property and copyright 2003 Star24._

**______________________________________________________________**__

**Chapter One**

**San Francisco******

The night was black in San Francisco, and one of the city's frequent fogs had rolled in from the bay. There was no moon to break the darkness and the city street lights were muffled by the fog. The doors of the War Memorial Opera House on Van Ness Street opened and shot a beam of light out into the mist. On the street in front, limousines were lined up awaiting their passengers. Even in the broken world that existed after the Pulse, there were still those with the time and money left to enjoy what had once been known as the finer things in life.

Hidden in a doorway across the street, a figure dressed all in black stared intently at the richly dressed, departing patrons of the opera as they streamed down the steps.  "Target has been identified," was whispered into a throat mike. The figure waited and then whispered once more, "Affirmative. Will proceed with termination." It raised a rifle to its shoulder fitting the sophisticated gun site to one eye.

Pffffftttt… There was soft pop from the silenced weapon as the figure squeezed the trigger.  Across the road there was a sudden commotion as a tall, white haired man slumped to the ground.  Several men surrounded the fallen man as another half dozen fanned out, running across the street toward the origination of the shot. They were clearly Secret Service protective types, each one carrying a handgun, and they were all communicating with each other through headsets.

The first one to reach the doorway that had only moments before been occupied by the sniper, reached down and picked up a shell casing. "The shooter was here. Cover the area," he ordered. "Jones, get on the horn to the police and order a cordon of the city. Now."

On the rooftop above, the figure laughed softly and pulled off its dark hood to reveal a fall of long dark hair. She turned and leapt, catlike, to the rooftop of the next building, a distance of at least 30 feet, landing softly.

"Mission accomplished. Target eliminated. I'm returning to base." She spoke softly into her own mike as she swiftly vanished across the San Francisco rooftops.

**Seattle****, ****WA**** -- ****Fogle****Towers******

**"_This has been a breaking news bulletin…Senator John Watkins has been killed, shot down in cold blood by an unidentified assassin as he was leaving the San Francisco Opera this evening.  _****_San Francisco_****_ is in a state of high alert and police cordons have been set up.  No one is being allowed to leave or enter the city…"_******

The television broadcast droned on, giving the details of the Senator's life and political career, and Logan Cale impatiently pressed the mute button on the remote as he turned from the set.

"Damn. That's the third one in as many months."

"Third what, Logan?" Bling glanced up from packing up his PT equipment.

"The third death of someone who's asked a few too many questions about government backed genetic experimentation. Kinda makes you wonder what's going on."

"The news said they have the city shut down. Maybe they'll get the shooter."

Logan laughed harshly. "Not if the shooter is what I think they might be."

He turned from Bling in dismissal, and wheeled over to stare out the window. Bling regarded him silently for a moment and then with a shrug said to him, "I'm gonna call it a night. Need anything before I go?" 

"No thanks, Bling. I'm good. See you tomorrow."

"Yeah. Night, man." Bling let himself out, leaving Logan to his lonely vigil.

**Max and Original Cindy's Crib  8:00 AM September 20th, 2021**

Original Cindy walked into her small kitchen, bleary eyed from a late night at CRASH the night before. She fixed herself a cup of coffee and as she drank it, her eyes fell on the motorcycle sitting in the corner of the living room.  The smart thing would be to sell it and free up the space, as well as giving herself some extra spending money, but she couldn't bring herself to do it.  

When Logan had first asked her about the bike, telling her that he had it in his condo parking garage her first impulse had been to tell him to just get rid of it. But that felt too much like giving up and Original Cindy wasn't ready to let go of her home girl just yet. So she had asked Logan to send it over to her place, and there it sat in solitary splendor, waiting for its rider to return. 

Cindy sighed and finished her coffee, stopping only to run a gentle hand over the Ninja before she headed out for another day at Jam Pony.

**Seattle****, ****Fogle****Towers****--**11 AM****** **September 20th, 2021********

Logan was completely involved in his bank of computer equipment, alternating between typing in commands, and spending long minutes staring at the results on his various monitors.  The man now sitting at the keyboard was a far cry from the sophisticated, urbane picture he had presented a few short months ago.

His hair was shaggy and unkempt and he hadn't shaven in days. Instead of his former style of neatly pressed khakis and casual sweaters, he had on a pair of baggy, painter style khaki pants and a dark green t-shirt that had seen better days, its arms cropped off to reveal well muscled shoulders and arms. A camouflage vest was thrown carelessly over a shelf in the corner of the room.  He looked more like a tough streetwise denizen of Seattle, than the wealthy, well-educated sophisticate he had been raised to be.

Bling entered the room, taking in Logan's state with a glance, and sighed heavily.

"Man, you know you really need to lose the urban guerilla look already. Don't do you justice."

Logan turned impatiently and stared at Bling, "I've got other things on my mind besides aspiring to model for Polo, Bling." He paused then muttered, almost to himself, "It's not like my looking good helped keep her alive anyway..." 

Bling gave Logan a hard look. "I heard that. You think Max would want to see you doing this to yourself? When's the last time you had a decent meal anyway? A diet of peanut butter sandwiches and beer doesn't exactly qualify as nutritionally balanced."

"Leave Max out of this." Logan's eyes blazed with anger and something else, as he glared at Bling. 

"Logan, this is all about Max. Do you really think I don't know that? The only thing I haven't figured out is whether you're trying to avenge her or to commit slow suicide to be with her. If it's the latter you're doin' a damn good job of it." He paused then continued, "I'm gonna fix some real food. If you get some sense into that thick head of yours, you're welcome to join me."

With that he turned and headed out to the kitchen, leaving Logan to mull over his words. 

**End Chapter 1**


	3. Chapter Two

**Smoke & Mirrors by Star24**

**Disclaimer: **_Dark Angel and its characters are property of Twentieth Century Fox and James Cameron and Charles Eglee. This original story is property and copyright 2003 Star24._

**______________________________________________________________**__

**Seattle****, Jam Pony X-Press**

It was lunch hour and Jam Pony was bustling with messengers grabbing a bite to eat between runs. The wide screen television that Normal provided was tuned to the midday news which was showing coverage of the funeral of Senator John Watkins of California.

"Dunno why Normal has to torture us with this stuff at lunchtime." Sketchy grumbled as he bit into his bologna sandwich and then followed it with a gulp of soda.. 

"Hey mon, its all good, part of the great design, to all tings a time, a place, the river flows on." Herbal tossed in some of his philosophy.

"Well this ain't the time I wanna watch this stuff." Sketchy responded.  

"No, you'd rather getcha groove on watchin' half naked babes playin' beach blanket boogie," Original Cindy observed sarcastically as she joined the two of them. 

Sketchy brightened at the image she had conjured up. "Hey, maybe we could get Normal to put on the Bay Watch reruns? Ya think?" Original Cindy opened her mouth to give him a blistering reply, but she was interrupted by a burst of static.

**"_Do not attempt to adjust your set. This is a Streaming Freedom video bulletin. The cable hack will last exactly 60 seconds. It cannot be traced, it cannot be stopped, and it is the only free voice left in this city_. _In the past months there have been a series of sudden deaths of prominent political leaders in our country. Senator William Wendell of New York was the first, followed by Congresswoman Janice Rogan of Texas, and the most recent, Senator John Watkins of _****_California_****_._****_ These three politicians had one thing in common. Each one, before their death, had made inquiries into the state of government research in genetic technology.  That interest and their deaths are not coincidental. There is an entity that is responsible. An entity that has for years been using taxpayer money for their twisted experimentation in genetic manipulation. Eyes Only has obtained information on this entity and in the coming days will be bringing it into the light. This has been an Eyes Only Streaming Freedom video bulletin. Peace. Out."_**

"Whoa, man that's deep. What do ya think they been doing? You think they've been making like monsters or something?" Sketchy pondered. 

Original Cindy reached over and swatted him. "Yeah, fool, and if you don't watch out, one a them monsters is gonna get your ass."  Rolling her eyes, she turned back to her lunch muttering about "peeps who watched way too many X-Files reruns."

The three ate in silence for a few minutes, each lost in their own thoughts, until Normal began to yell out. "Bip bip bip… lunch is over you slackers. Packages needing homes. Get a move on. No one goes home until every one of these babies is delivered…"

**Seattle****, South Market - September 22**

Logan sat sipping a cup of what was billed as coffee, as he watched the crowds swirl around him in South Market.  This was a place where you could get anything you wanted, provided you had the money to pay for it.  Vendors hawked fresh fruits and vegetables, the occasional chicken, and more exotic items such as fish, and even sometimes rare luxuries such as beef.  Cosmetics and clothes and cooking gear were openly displayed by the same merchants who also dealt discreetly in black market items such as drugs, alcohol, and cigarettes. 

"Anyone sitting here?" The rough voice interrupted Logan's study of the people around him. He looked up to see a nondescript male in his thirties standing next to the empty chair at his table. The man tossed down a newspaper with an article circled in red, in front of Logan.  Logan looked at the paper and the article, and then smiled briefly.

"The seat is yours." The man grunted in affirmation and proceeded to sit down and pull the top off of the paper cup of coffee he carried in his hand. There was silence for a moment as he took a gulp of his coffee, and then he began to speak.

"I heard you're looking for information on genetics research?" He looked down as if he was reading the newspaper, as he talked. He held his coffee cup close to his mouth obscuring the movement of his lips from any onlookers. 

Logan nodded slightly and continued to look around the market as he drank his bitter coffee.

"It's gonna cost you." The man took another gulp of coffee and waited.

"Money isn't a problem. Reach under your seat and you'll find an envelope with the agreed on amount in it. My employer is willing to double that once your information checks out." 

The stranger sipped his coffee and then, as he set it down, his newspaper fell to the ground. With an annoyed exclamation he leaned down to pick it up from under his chair. Leaving it in his lap this time, he glanced around and began to speak quickly.

*****

From a vantage point on the upper balcony of South Market, a woman, dressed in a black leather jacket and black jeans, her dark hair pulled back into a long braid that hung down her back, scanned the area below. She leaned against the railing, screened by a pillar behind her. She was almost invisible to the pedestrians moving along this level.  Her eyes narrowed and she concentrated on a table where two men were seated drinking coffee. The first had his back to her, but it was the other she focused in on. 

"Base, I've located the target." She spoke softly into the throat mike dangling from the small earpiece she was wearing. 

"Proceed with termination."

"Affirmative"

The woman glanced around to be sure she was out of sight of any curious pedestrians or vendors and then, satisfied, pulled a small weapon from her pocket.  The end bore the distinctive shape of a silencer. Not bothering with any kind of gun sight, even though the man who was her target was a good 50 yards away, she raised the weapon and her finger began to tighten on the trigger. 

Before she could complete the motion, there was a sudden commotion below. A boy of about thirteen ran past the table the two men were seated at, followed by a screaming vendor.

"Stop, thief. Stop him…" 

That alone would have only caused her to pause, to wait for a clear shot, but the commotion caused the second man at the table to turn around so that he was facing her.

She froze as his face came into focus.  The dark blondish hair, the small wire rimmed glasses and the piercing blue of his eyes, arrested her motion.  Even though she knew he couldn't see her in any detail at this distance, she felt like he was staring straight at her. Making a quick decision she spoke into her mike.

"Base there is a complication.  My position may have been compromised."

"Pull back. Exposure is not to be risked at this time. Acknowledge."

"Acknowledged."  She shoved the gun back into her pocket and turned from the railing.  

As she headed out of the market there was a concerned look on her face.

**End of Chapter Two**


	4. Chapter Three

**Smoke & Mirrors by Star24**

**Disclaimer: _Dark Angel and its characters are property of Twentieth Century Fox and James Cameron and Charles Eglee. This original story is property and copyright 2003 Star24._**

**Chapter Three**

**Fogle****Towers******

Logan slid the disk his informant had passed to him into his computer drive. After carefully checking it for viruses or trojans and finding it clean, he scrolled through the list of files to the one he was most interested in.  Typing in a command he watched with suppressed excitement as a program began to execute.

**SEARCHING FOR SERVER…SERVER FOUND…WAITING FOR CONNECTION…CONNECTED TO SERVER…VERIFYING PASSWORD…****WELCOME DR.** GILLEN…****

"Bingo," he exclaimed to himself in quiet triumph. "Now let's see exactly what dirty little secrets you've been hiding from all of us, Manticore."  Within moments he was intent on his screen as the Manticore database lay open in front of him.

**Manticore****Operations****Center******

The bored technician on duty in the computer operations center of Manticore, yawned and stretched as he ran his eyes across the display screens that were his responsibility.

"Hey Joe, whats 'a matter? That hot little wife of yours keepin' you up too late?" His partner caught the yawn and teased.

"You're just jealous 'cause you ain't got a girlfriend, let alone someone like my Maryanne," the tech threw back.  The two bantered back and forth for a few moments and then the second tech rose from his chair.

"You want a soda? I'm gonna run out to the machine." 

"Sure." Joe reached into his pocket and tossed some coins at his partner. Then he settled in to watch the monitors, daydreaming of his new wife and the previous night. 

_Beeeeeep_…the shrill beeping of an alarm got his attention. Leaning forward he punched in a command, and then drew in a breath. His partner returned with the sodas and some bags of chips, and started to speak, but Joe motioned him to silence.

"We got us a bogey. Look at this." He pointed to the screen in front of him.

The second tech leaned in to study the monitors. "Whoa, man. This guy's good. He got all the way in to the mainframe without tripping any alarms. How long's he been in and what's he seen?"

"Dunno.  He didn't trip anything until he went into the Delta database. Could have been in for a while. Hang on, I'm trying a trace." There was silence for a moment as the two techs concentrated on the screens in front of them. A window headed _Trace in Progress opened and a moving green bar displayed the progress of the trace. Suddenly the bar stopped moving and the window blinked repetitiously at them… __Connection broken…Connection broken…_

"Damn! Lost him."

"Did you get anything at all?"

Joe looked at the trace results and shook his head. "Seattle. That's it. He must have picked up on the trace and cut out before it could complete. He's good. Damn good."  He reached over and pulled a disk from a drive. "Hold down the fort. I better get this to Director Renfro right away."

"Oh yeah. Don't want the Ice Queen pissed because you delayed on getting her any info."

"All I know is that I wouldn't want to be this guy when she locates him. Hope he's got himself a good funeral plan set up."

Joe turned and hurried from the operations center as his partner settled in with his snack.

**September 26  Woods outside of ****Seattle******

Max fought her way through the dense forest.  Her hands were covered with lacerations from the barbed wire fencing at Manticore and her clothing was ripped.  She moved cautiously, stopping periodically to look and listen for signs of pursuit.  She had been moving through the woods for days, and it seemed she had finally lost any pursuit there might have been. 

All at once she came to the end of the woods.  From behind a tree she gazed out over the cityscape of Seattle,  which was dominated by the Space Needle.  She smiled and plunged ahead. It was already late in the day and darkness would be arriving in just a few hours. It was time for speed now, not stealth.

**Jam Pony **

Original Cindy pushed her bike into Jam Pony and lifted it over her head with the ease of long practice, hooking it onto one of the overhead racks. 

"Hey, hey, hey Missy. Knocking off a bit early are we?" Normal caught her action, even though he had appeared to be engrossed in some kind of paperwork.

"It's 4:56 PM and this girl ain't headin' out on no more runs today." 

"Work day goes until 5 PM. Unless you want to get docked I better see you doing something work related for the next four minutes."

"Yeah, yeah," she responded. "Don't get your panties in a twist." 

"I heard that Miss Thang." Normal responded sarcastically. 

Original Cindy looked at him innocently, "What? Heard me say that I was gonna go give the ladies a shot of Lysol mist? Ain't that work related enough for you? It's not like your cleaning service actually cleans in there." 

Normal snorted and turned back to his paperwork after pointedly placing a can of disinfectant spray on the counter.  Cindy strolled over and was about to pick it up when she caught sight of a figure standing in the doorway. The clang of the can on the floor caught Normal's attention and he looked up to see Original Cindy hugging another girl.

"Hey, none of that here. This is a decent and respectable place of business. Keep your personal perversions out of it," he called out in a huff.

The two girls ignored him and he dropped his paperwork and headed out of the cage, only to stop short when he reached the pair, and Original Cindy stepped back to reveal her partner.

"For the love of Mike. What in Sam hill are _you_ doing back here?" Normal sputtered in shock.

"Nice to see you too, Normal. Its good to know you missed me," Max tossed out sarcastically.  She was filthy and her clothes were torn, but it was definitely Max.

"Your reprobate pals said you were dead. I should have known it was just an excuse for an unauthorized vacation. Don't think you can just waltz back in here and have your job back. You left me in the lurch while you were off shacking up with some guy, or whatever it is you were doing."

Max opened her mouth to answer, but was forestalled by Original Cindy.

"Yeah right, whatever, Normal. C'mon girl let's get you home. You look like you need a bath and some rest. We'll deal with Mr. High and Mighty tomorrow." Original Cindy wrapped her arm around Max's shoulders and pushed her out the door without a backward glance at the still sputtering Normal.

"That's four minutes off of your pay, Missy." he called after them, managing to get in the last word.

**End of Chapter Three.**


	5. Chapter Four

**Smoke & Mirrors by Star 24**

**Disclaimer: **_Dark Angel and its characters are property of Twentieth Century Fox and James Cameron and Charles Eglee. This original story is property and copyright 2003 Star24._

**______________________________________________________________**__

**Chapter Four**

**Max and Original Cindy's Crib**

Max sat on the battered sofa, wrapped in a soft red robe with her legs curled underneath her. She sipped from the cup of broth Original Cindy had brought to her.  Cindy picked up her own cup, and came to sit on the other end of the sofa, facing her.

"So spill it, girlfriend.  We all thought you were gone to join the heavenly chorus. Logan said you were shot in the heart by those black helicopter guys who were on your tail. Now you home and you tellin' Original Cindy that they brought you back from the dead with a heart transplant from your brother? The brother you never told me you had?" 

"Logan said?" There was a hesitation in Max's voice as she repeated Logan's name.

"He was there. The boy was a wreck. Watchin' you die and all. He's gonna go ballistic when he finds out you're still among the living." Cindy paused, "unless you already went to see him?" 

"No. Why would I go to him before you?" Max regarded her friend in honest bewilderment. 

"Well you two bein' as close as you were and all." Original Cindy looked closely at Max. 

"We were friends." Max stared at Cindy, who took a breath before answering slowly.

"Yeah right, that's what ya always told me. I just thought there was more to it."

Max laughed.  "I don't think so, and I guess I'm the one who would know. Logan was a friend is all. You're my best boo." Her gaze wandered around the apartment coming to rest on the black Ninja sitting in the middle of the room. "Thanks for keeping my baby safe for me," she said softly. 

Original Cindy continued to look at her with a troubled gaze. "Sure, no problem. Somehow it just didn't seem right to get rid of her. Maybe I was hopin' you'd come back to ride her again."

Max yawned.  "Look, I've been on the run for days, I need to crash. I was afraid to sleep 'cause I thought they might catch up with me while I did. Wasn't easy getting out of there."

"How did you get out?"

"Long story. Can I tell ya tomorrow? I sit here any longer I'm gonna fall asleep where I'm sitting" 

Original Cindy smiled, "Room's still there and your clothes are in the drawers."

Max rose and walked to the end of the couch. Leaning down she hugged Original Cindy. "It's good to be home."

"Welcome home, sugah. Welcome home." Cindy hugged her in return, and then sat back thoughtfully as Max left the room.

**Fogle****Towers******

"Hello" Logan spoke into the headset of his phone, even as he continued to study one of the files he had managed to download from Manticore before they had detected his intrusion. It had been a near thing, but he had managed to break the trace before it completed, and he had come away with a lot of information. The key now was interpreting what he had found.

"Hey, boo."  Original Cindy's voice greeted him.

"Hey. What's up?" Logan was surprised to hear from her. At first, after the ill fated raid on Manticore, they had stayed in frequent touch, but as time passed, it had been easier not to be reminded of Max, so he had pulled away from contact with her friends. 

"You sittin' down?"

"Yes. Why?"

"I got some news for ya. Now there's the good of it and there's the bad, I gotta level." Original Cindy sounded hesitant, not quite like herself. There was the sound of a car gunning its motor behind her, making it clear she was calling from somewhere outdoors.

"Are you okay? Is something wrong?" Logan became concerned. "Is someone after you? Do you need to come here?" His fingers were busy on the keyboard as he spoke.

"Whoa, chill boy. Ain't no one after Original Cindy."

"Why are you calling me from a payphone then?" Logan had already traced the call to a phone on the corner outside of Cindy's place, and the location was blinking on his monitor.  

"'Cause I needed some privacy for this call." Logan could hear her take a deep breath on the other end of the phone. Her next words floored him as she said in a rush, "Max is back."

Logan sat there fingers arrested on his keyboard.  "Max is dead. She died in my arms." His voice was harsh as he dismissed her words.

"Boo, she died, but she been resurrected. It's Max aiight, complete with the scar on her chest where they transplanted her brother's heart. I'd know my homegirl anywhere; it's her."

"Oh my God." Logan almost whispered the words, and then there was silence on the phone. 

"Logan? You still there?"

"I'm on my way over."

"NO!" Original Cindy paused, not sure how to continue. "Logan, she's sleeping."

"I won't wake her. I need to see her. To touch her…to know she's really still alive." Logan sounded like he was fighting off tears.

Original Cindy's voice was gentle as she responded. "Thing is boo… she don't remember you. Least not as anything more than a friend. I'm sorry."

There was silence for a few moments. "She made herself forget." Logan sounded as if he was talking to himself. "To protect me."

"Huh?" It was clear Original Cindy was confused.

"It's a long story. Max has the ability to—selectively forget things if she has to." Logan was silent a moment. "Okay look, I won't come over tonight then. You sure you're all right though? She wasn't followed?" 

"She said not and I ain't seen nothing out of the ordinary."

"I'm going to arrange to have someone keep an eye on your place for tonight. Call me in the morning on my cell, okay? I need to see her." The last words were almost a plea, and Cindy found herself slowly nodding.

"Okay." Cindy paused then went on quickly, "Logan…it'll be okay. She's alive and she's back."

"Yeah. Thanks." There was a click as the connection was broken. Logan sat there for a moment and then, reaching a decision, he rose and pulled on the dark jacket that was slung over a chair. He grabbed his laptop case and his car keys and turned to leave his apartment. He stopped and returning to his computer room he opened a drawer and pulled out his gun. After making sure it was loaded and the safety was on, he shoved it into his pocket and was out the door.

Twenty minutes later he pulled his car into a space across from Max's building.  He turned off the engine, opened his laptop, and quickly tapped into the Manticore communications frequency that had been supplied to him on his informant's computer disk.  As routine transmissions began to fill the silence in his car, he settled back to wait out the remaining hours of the night.

**End of Chapter 4**


	6. Chapter Five

**Smoke & Mirrors by Star24**

**Disclaimer: **_Dark Angel and its characters are property of Twentieth Century Fox and James Cameron and Charles Eglee. This original story is property and copyright 2003 Star24._

**______________________________________________________________**

**Chapter Five**

**Max's Crib – next morning**

Max stretched lazily as the morning sun hit her eyes.  "Ouch." She grimaced as her shoulder gave a slight pop.  Looking down she could see the bruises and scratches on her arms and legs from her rough trip through the woods.  As she sat on the edge of the bed and looked around for some clothes, a familiar voice intruded on her.

"You're a sight, and Original Cindy has gotta say, not exactly a pretty one. There's hot water waitin' in the bathtub with your name on it – why don't cha take a nice long soak?" Original Cindy was smiling at her from the doorway.

Max smiled back. "Sounds like a slice of heaven. Thanks, boo. Hey, you don't happen to have any shaving foam?" She looked ruefully at her bare legs. "Manticore wasn't exactly big on the girly arts." 

Original Cindy laughed, "Get your ass in the tub and I'll see what I can find." With that she left Max who headed for the bathroom and the promised hot bath.

* * * 

"…so anyway  you shoulda seen Normal's face yesterday when he realized it was my girl back again. Looked like he was gonna have a heart attack and drop on the spot."  Original Cindy was talking to someone as Max opened the door of the bathroom and headed for her room.  She was wrapped only in a towel, and as she came into view of the living room, she heard someone take in a deep breath at her appearance.

"Max."  The voice was male and husky, and sent a quick shiver down her spine. She stopped dead, and for a moment she stood there, seemingly confused. Shaking it off she looked over to see who was sitting on the battered sofa.  He was tall, even seated that was obvious, with dark blondish hair that was in need of a cut, and what looked like several days growth of beard.  Behind glasses his eyes were an intense blue, or maybe gray, it was hard to tell since the color shifted even as she watched.

"Logan?" The name came into her head unbidden. "What are you doing here?" 

He had started to rise to come toward her, but at her words he sank back down and a look of disappointment crossed his face. He quickly shuttered it and smiled at her, saying a bit too casually, "I was in the neighborhood and managed to score some fresh hot cinnamon rolls, so I figured I'd share them with Original Cindy.  She was just telling me that you were back." 

Despite his casual tone, he was staring at her intensely as if waiting for a reaction to his presence, and suddenly she was keenly aware of the skimpiness of her covering.  Glancing down she pulled the towel a bit more tightly around herself.  Her movement drew his attention, and his eyes swept over her body before coming back up to meet hers. As their eyes met, Max flushed slightly, and with a murmured excuse she quickly turned and headed into her room.

"Whew, it suddenly got kinda hot in here." Original Cindy observed sarcastically. "What happened to playing it cool and givin' her time?"

Logan looked at her helplessly, "Do you have any idea how hard it was for me not to go to her just now?"  His voice was low and the tension he felt was evident.

"So maybe you shoulda. Maybe you layin' a lip lock on her is exactly what she needs to remember ya?  Original Cindy isn't much for hidin' things from her boos, and accordin' to the view from here, you two spent way too much time hidin' from each other already."

Logan ran a hand through his hair, "And maybe if I did what you said, she'd kick my ass into next week and I'd never see her again. I don't understand the Manticore memory techniques well enough to know for sure, and I won't take that chance. I've waited this long, I can wait a bit longer. Look, I better go. Tell her I'll see her later if she wants."  Before Cindy could respond, he rose and was out the door, letting it close sharply behind him.

* * * 

"So, Logan, how'd you manage to score fresh cinnamon rolls?" Max called out as she emerged from the bedroom a few minutes later. She was dressed in a pair of jeans and a midriff skimming navy blue t-shirt.

"Boy had to run but he left you some goodies." Original Cindy answered gesturing towards the counter.

"Oh." Max sounded disappointed. She ambled over and picked up a roll, biting into it and smiling at the sweet taste. "Mmmm. Didn't get these at Manticore either. Where'd he run off to in such a hurry?"

"He didn't lay the 411 on Original Cindy, but he said he'd see you later if you wanted."

Max brightened at that, "Yeah maybe I can stop by his place at…" She stopped, at a loss, and then looked in puzzlement at Original Cindy.

"You don't remember where he lives?" 

"No." Max wrinkled her forehead. "I know I should. I mean I remember being at his place, but I can't remember where it is. I know Manticore was playin' tricks with my head while I was there but you'd think I'd remember that. I remember you and Jam Pony and the rest of the gang…Weird…"

Cindy didn't comment on Max's erratic memory.  "He hangs out at Fogle Towers, boo. The penthouse."

Max let out a whistle. "How'd I manage to hook up with a hot boy from the right side of the tracks?"

"Dunno. You never gave me the skinny. Just introduced him one night in Crash." Original Cindy paused and then probed, "so you do think he's hot?" 

Max grinned, "Like what female wouldn't? C'mon OC, I mean I know you swing the other way, but you always had an eye for a fine lookin man. Strictly observational, I know."

"Yeah. He's hot aiight. Just never heard you admit it before except…" Original Cindy stopped, not sure if she should go on.

"Except when?" Max was clearly curious.

"Except that time you were feelin' your feline hormones and had to go do some errand or somethin' with him. You didn't think you were gonna make it without jumpin' his bones that night. Don't you remember?"

"Hmmm, it's kind of there but hazy." Max frowned. "So I guess I made it without jumpin' his bones. Don't think I'd forget that."

"S'posedly nothin' went down. At least according to you."  

Max was silent. A slow smile spread across her face.

"What you lookin' like the cat that swallowed the canary about?" Cindy asked suspiciously.

"Maybe its time I got to know Logan Cale a bit better." With that she bit down into her roll and silence fell as Max ate, and Original Cindy sat lost in her thoughts.

**Fogle Towers – later that day**

Max slipped the lock pick back into her pocket and slowly eased open the door to Logan's apartment.  It was a gray day, and this late in the afternoon the apartment was dim, except for the flickering blue glow coming from a room to her right. 

Max slipped inside and headed toward the light. 

"…this research has gone on for the past twenty years funded by taxpayer money. Manticore, as the facility is known…"

Max froze at the word Manticore.  She eased herself down the hallway and peered into the room that was the source of the light and the voice.  Logan was sitting in front of a bank of computers speaking into a headset as he looked into a camera. He wasn't wearing his glasses. On the monitor in front of him, his eyes appeared, encased in a streaming red, white and blue banner. 

"…this has been a Streaming Freedom Video. Peace. Out." Logan stopped speaking and reached forward to the keyboard.  

Max quickly retreated to the front door and let herself out as silently as she had entered.

**End of Chapter 4**


	7. Chapter Six

**Smoke & Mirrors by Star24**

**Disclaimer: **_Dark Angel and its characters are property of Twentieth Century Fox and James Cameron and Charles Eglee. This original story is property and copyright 2003 Star24._

**______________________________________________________________**

**Chapter Six**

**Seattle Street**** Corner**

The Seattle streets were wet from a recent rain shower and the air was dank and cold. Streetlights cast a muted glow over the deserted streets.  Max stood at the pay phone on the corner, tapping her foot impatiently.

"I've located the target." She spoke softly into the receiver. She listened for a moment. "Yeah, I understand. I should be able to get the information pretty quickly and then I'll deal with him. There's another civilian with knowledge of Manticore that I'll have to deal with as well, but that one will be easy. She can wait until the primary target is taken care of. Expect me home in a day or two." She hung up the phone and walked to the Ninja parked close by.  She jumped on and revved the engine, and then roared off into the night, dark hair streaming behind her. ****

**Jam Pony Next Morning**

"No way in the world are you coming back to work here, Missy. Not after leaving me flat for three months with that lame death story." Normal was adamant as Max faced him over the counter.

"Normal, I'm the best rider you ever had, and you know it."

"Hah. You were adequate _when you bothered to show up. We've done just fine without you for three months." Normal turned away to look through the pile of packages behind the counter._

"Right. And how many riders you gone through a week since she's been gone? Not to mention Max is the only one who manages to get around the 'hoods 'thout gettin' ripped off at least once a week." Original Cindy joined in the fray.

"You stay out of this, Miss. Unless you want to be out on the streets with your reprobate friend here." Normal glared at Original Cindy who shrugged and headed to her locker. 

"Yo, Normal, got a delivery to Canal and 20th," the dispatcher behind him called out.

"No way I'm goin' near that hood." Sketchy shook his head as Normal started to hand the package over to him. Three other messengers similarly refused, and Normal was about to toss the package behind him, when a small feminine hand reached out and grabbed it.

"Beggars can't be choosers. You got my Sector pass for me?" Max stood there, package in hand and a triumphant grin on her face. 

"You are on permanent probation, Missy. Anymore tall tales and you are out of here for good." Normal continued to grumble under his breath as he reached into a file cabinet and tossed a pass at Max. She threw him a smile as she clipped it on and grabbed a bike from the rack overhead.  Original Cindy was waiting for her outside the entrance, and the two exchanged high fives as they set out on their rounds.

**CRASH   That evening**

"So** tell me more about Logan." Max inquired casually of Original Cindy, as the two sat sipping beers and watching the clientele. Crash was busy and they were lucky to have found a table.**

"He's your boo not mine. Not much for me to tell you." Original Cindy hedged. "Most I know's that he showed up here one night and you told me he was your 'good friend Logan Cale'. Now as to the how and why of it you never did spill the details."

"It's just weird that I can't remember more about him." A frown crinkled Max's forehead as she stared down into her mug of beer.

"Maybe there ain't nothin'much to remember. You always swore you two weren't like that." Original Cindy hedged and took a swig of beer to buy time. 

"Yeah, maybe." Max didn't seem satisfied, but she let the subject of Logan drop, much to Cindy's relief. "I'm gonna go get a refill." 

"I'm gonna hit the ladies."

Max nodded and grabbed the now empty pitcher, and stood up to go to the bar. There was a long line waiting for drinks, and it was clear it would take her some time to return.

Original Cindy headed to the restroom area which also was home to the public phones. When she got there, she checked to be sure Max was busy at the bar, and then quickly dialed a number.

"Hello," Logan's voice answered after only a few rings.

"Hey. She's with me at Crash."

"Has she remembered anything more?"

"She doesn't seem to remember much about you at all. And she doesn't seem to wanna talk about exactly how she split black hat central."

"Okay.  Do me a favor and keep her there for a while. I'm trying to contact someone who might be able to give us some more information on her memory loss."

"Sure will, boo." Original Cindy paused, "It's gonna come right.  My momma always said ya gotta keep the faith."

There was a silence and then Logan responded, "Yeah. Let's hope your momma was right." There was a click as he disconnected the line. Original Cindy sighed then turned and headed back to her table.

**Fogle****Towers******

Logan punched some numbers into his phone, and waited impatiently as the phone on the other end rang repeatedly. Finally it was answered, but the voice was the slightly mechanical one of an answering service.

"You have reached X-Treme Training and Expeditions. Please leave your message at the tone and someone will get back to you."

"Hey Deck. I know it's been a while since we raised hell and blew up the town so to speak, but I wanted to let you know that a mutual friend is in town. I thought you might want to say hello. Her visit is a real surprise. I mean it's like she's back from the dead, that's how long it's been, a real memory teaser you might say. Anyway, I thought you'd want to know, give me a call so we can catch up on old times."

Message left, Logan hung up the phone and tried another number. This time when he heard the beep beep beep of a pager, he punched in a series of numbers and hung up. He sighed as he pushed back from his desk and rose to go get a drink. 

Glass of water in hand, he wandered back to his computers and pulled up a picture on the screen. Max gazed back at him solemnly, caught frozen in the corridors of Manticore.  With a sad smile he reached out to gently trace her features, murmuring to himself,

"You're back but you don't really remember me. In all my wild dreams of you somehow returning, I never even thought about this one. What's it going to take to bring you all the way back to me, Max?"  Lapsing into silence he continued to stare at the screen, lost in thought.

_Max leaned against one of the tables in Logan's computer room, as __Logan__ rolled his wheelchair over to her and reached out a hand to give her an earpiece.  Instead of taking it and pulling her hand back, she curled her fingers around his and looked at him as she said almost shyly, "This'll wait, right?" _

_She was referring to their admission of feelings toward each other earlier that night, to the long overdue kisses that had taken place just prior to Zack interrupting them bringing word of Tinga's whereabouts._

_Logan smiled at her reassuringly as his fingers tightened on hers, "We've got all the time in the world." For a moment their eyes locked, exchanging messages of caring that neither one was quite ready to put into words…_

Time passed as Logan continued to sit and stare at the picture of Max.

**End of Chapter Six**


	8. Chapter 7

**Smoke & Mirrors by Star24**

**Disclaimer: **_Dark Angel and its characters are property of Twentieth Century Fox and James Cameron and Charles Eglee. This original story is property and copyright 2003 Star24._

**______________________________________________________________**__

**Chapter Seven**

**CRASH**

"That's one more for me," Max declared as she twirled the foosball sticks and grinned at Original Cindy. "Ya wanna play one more round? Get your revenge?"

"No thanks. Original Cindy's done gettin' her ass kicked by homegirl, so she's gonna go quench her thirst and check out that fine lookin' lickety chick that just came in." 

Max shrugged, "In that case I think I'm gonna blaze, take a ride on my baby."

"If Original Cindy ain't home when you get in you'll know where she is, sugah. I got the feelin' that tonight's gonna be my lucky night." With that Original Cindy winked and headed off to the bar. 

Max shook her head, smiling as she made her way up the stairs and out the door to where her Ninja was parked in the alleyway.

**Fogle**** **Towers********

**"**…give me a call when you get this. I'm working on arranging that family reunion we all thought would never happen but I need some information from you about some of the missing members." Logan hung up on Syl's voice mailbox and sat back in his chair. Max's picture still stared at him from his monitor, and he ran his hands through his hair in a gesture of frustration as he reached over and clicked a key to minimize the picture.

"So what's the setup in aid of? Never seen so much expensive computer equipment in someone's personal space before."

Logan started at Max's voice, and looked up to see her standing at the entrance to the computer room. He shot a look at his screen, and was relieved to see that the screen saver had kicked in, covering the picture of her. 

Max sauntered over and leaned her hips against the desk in a familiar fashion. "What, did I pry into some state secret or something? Or are you always this welcoming to your friends?"

"Oh…sorry Max, my mind was on something else and you caught me by surprise." Logan hedged. 

Max just smiled at him and for a moment their eyes locked. Neither one moved, as they were both caught in a staring contest and the room seemed to crackle with electricity.

"You hungry?" Logan rose and started for the kitchen, breaking the tension.

"Sure, why not." Max trailed along after him, letting her gaze sweep over his tall figure. There was a faint mechanical whine and she looked down to see a frame of some type fitted over his boots. A small frown crossed her face, but then she shrugged and continued after Logan.

Once in the kitchen, Logan busied himself pulling bowls out of the refrigerator, while Max perched herself on the center island, watching with interest. 

"Original Cindy says I used to spend a lot of time over here with you?" The inflection in her voice turned the words into a question.

"Yes." Logan answered, seemingly absorbed in what he was doing.

"She also said we were just friends?"

"And your question is?" Logan parried, avoiding her eyes.

"Were we just friends, Logan?" 

Logan turned from placing a plate in the microwave to find that Max had hopped down from her perch and was standing only inches away, gazing up at him.

"Don't you think you'd know if we were more than that, Max?" 

Max frowned as she looked up at him. "You would think so." 

_She is standing in her apartment and __Logan__ is sitting in a wheelchair facing her._

_He smiles and says, "I got a surprise for you. Cover your eyes."_

_"Is it a new carburetor? It is, isn't it?"_

_"No." _

_"Mmm, flowers... jewelry?" _

_"Since when do you wear jewelry?" _

_"I'm open to the idea." _

_"It's not jewelry. Don't peek." _

_"I'm not" _

_She senses that __Logan__ is now standing in front of her, and then she feels his hands reach up and gently pull hers down from her eyes.  She finds herself looking up into his face with a sense of shock and something else as well. Something she can't put a name to._

_"It's like some kind of miracle," she stammers._

_"You're the miracle. You did this. You gave me back my life." His voice is husky and the look in his eyes is wreaking havoc on her senses as they continue to stare at each other…_

"Max? Are you okay?" Logan's voice jerked her back to awareness.

"Yeah…I just had sort of a weird feeling there for a minute…ya know.. déjà vu, blah blah blah."

The two stood there, eyes locked on each other. Slowly, almost as if he couldn't help himself, Logan began to lower his face to her waiting one. Max didn't move, neither encouraging nor discouraging him. Their lips were within millimeters of touching, when the microwave timer went off.  Logan quickly straightened at the sound, and turned to take out the food. 

Max stood there watching him as he prepared two plates and carried them to the table. She seemed disappointed, and at the same time relieved, at the interruption.

"Max, grab the bottle of wine on the counter and a couple of glasses, okay?" Logan called over to her.  He was busy lighting a couple of candles and placing them carefully on the table, making sure they were centered exactly right.

"Sure thing." Max did as directed, and carried the bottle and the glasses over to the table. Logan had set their plates at right angles to each other, and after Max set down her booty, he pulled out her chair and seated her, before sitting down himself.

"So what is this anyway?" she asked, inhaling deeply and smiling at the aroma of the food.

"Just some leftover Poulet Chez Cale…"

"…and this wouldn't happen to be a Pre-Pulse Nuits-St. George would it?"

Logan looked at her inquiringly. "As a matter of fact it would be. How'd you know?"  he asked, a shade too casually. "Never knew you to be that into wines before."

"Guess I read the label." Max shrugged.

"The label is plain white, Max, my supplier likes to protect his sources." Logan pointed out.

"Oh. Lucky guess?" Max offered with a flirtatious smile.

Logan gave her an answering smile. "Yeah, must have been," he responded slowly, never taking his eyes from hers. He finally broke the look and raised his glass in a toast, "Bon appetit."

Max raised her glass in answer. "Back at ya," and they both began to eat.

**Seattle Pay Phone, several hours later**

Max's voice was harsh as she spoke quickly into the phone. "I told you I haven't been able to get access to the computers yet. I need a few more days."

She listened for a moment. "And if I did that and still couldn't get in who would there be left to give me the passwords?" She listened again a frown on her face then continued on, "I can handle him, but I need you to set something up for me… sort of a guarantee that he won't suspect a thing…here's what I want done…"

**End of Chapter Seven**


	9. Chapter Eight

**Smoke & Mirrors by Star24**

**Disclaimer: **_Dark Angel and its characters are property of Twentieth Century Fox and James Cameron and Charles Eglee. This original story is property and copyright 2003 Star24._

**______________________________________________________________**

**Fogle**** **Towers****** – two days later, early morning**

Logan's phone was shrilling insistently when he rolled out of his bathroom, obviously just out of the shower.  His hair was wet and a towel was slung around his neck. Droplets of water gleamed on his chest where he hadn't yet had time to dry off.

"Alright already, I'm coming," he muttered in annoyance as he wheeled himself rapidly over to the phone.

"Hello?" he answered briefly. He listened a moment and then his tone changed. "Syl. I've been trying to get in touch with you. I've got some news I know you'll be happy to hear."

He waited again. "No, I don't want to talk about it over the phone. How fast can you get to Seattle?"

A smile crossed his face, "That's great. Okay listen, I can meet you in about half an hour. Same place we used last time." 

Logan hung up the phone and headed over to his closet, clearly not wanting to waste any time. 

**Street outside ****Fogle****Towers******

Max stood motionless in the shadows of a deep doorway opposite the parking garage exit from Fogle Towers.  She had received a page from the garage attendant twenty minutes earlier, letting her know that Logan had ordered his car.  She smiled at the thought that a sexy smile and an implied promise of much more, had gained her such quick results. 

The honk of a car horn, warning pedestrians on the sidewalk to move clear of the garage entrance, recalled her attention to the garage. Within seconds a beat up, dark blue Aztek came into view. It stopped and then pulled left onto the street. Max focused in to be sure it was Logan driving, and smiled in satisfaction as she confirmed that it was.  As soon as the car reached the end of the block and turned down the side street, moving out of sight, she was out of her hiding place and across the street.  

Within minutes she had made her way down the garage ramp and past the attendant who was seated in a small cramped office watching television.  Reaching the elevator bank she punched in the access code and entered the empty car that opened up for her. The doors closed silently behind her and the car began a smooth ascent to the Penthouse.

"I'm on my way in. Subject has left the apartment and I should have free access to the computers. Is the other setup ready yet?" she whispered into her comm unit. Smiling at the answer she received, she leaned back against the wall of the elevator car and watched as the floor numbers climbed steadily higher on the display above the doors.

**Abandoned Warehouse, ****Seattle******

Logan pulled the Aztek into the dilapidated warehouse in a section near the abandoned docks. Judging by the names still visible on the building exteriors, the area had once been home to many international shipping concerns. Now it was deserted, except for a few gulls and some four legged scavengers rooting through the debris that cluttered the streets.

The warehouse seemed empty, but Logan reached over and pulled his gun from the glove compartment. He checked to be sure it was loaded, and then unlocked his car doors and cautiously climbed out.  It was eerily quiet. He steeled himself and walked toward a raised platform. There was a table set in the middle of it, with a few battered chairs clustered around it. He climbed the few steps up to the platform and stood there, looking down at the battered table top.

_Max stands outside of a black SUV next to Donald Lydecker. Logan is standing with Zack, Syl and Krit looking at her, thrilled to have her back but then he feels a chill of fear at her next words_

_"__Always on the run, constantly looking over your shoulder.__ You said it yourself. They'll never stop looking for us. They'll hunt us down one by one until we're either dead or in a cage. It's time to bring this war home." _

_"__Maybe you're right. But what about him?" Syl answers, looking at Lydecker._

_Zack intervenes, hostility clear in his voice and stance, "__And you expect us to believe he's had an epiphany because of what happened to Tinga?"_

_Max replies calmly, refusing to back down. "Maybe.__ Or one of his bosses wants him dead in a big way." _

_Now it's Krit's turn to interject, "__Take a number." _

_"Either way he's going to help us." Max isn't giving an inch._

_Logan__ has never seen Max so determined and he tries to make her see some sense, "Or double-cross you. Again." Reminding her of the incident with Brin. _

_"__I don't expect you to trust me, but remember what I taught you. The enemy of my enemy is my friend." Lydecker finally speaks for himself…_

"Hard place to come back to, huh Logan?"Logan started at the voice behind him, and turned to see Syl standing at the bottom of the steps.

"You should be more careful. I could have been Manticore, come to take you out." Her tone was chiding yet gentle. Logan had gotten to know Syl in the months after the Manticore raid when she had taken to dropping in to see him from time to time, 'checking up on her sister's squeeze' in her words. He fed her when she came by and they developed a casual friendship, nothing like what he had shared with Max, but comforting in its own way. 

Syl climbed the steps to the platform and Logan stepped over to her and gave her a hug. "It's good to see you. Lucky that you were in town when I called."

"No luck about it. I got your message the other night and it sounded like something that needed some personal attention." Syl studied Logan closely. "You're looking…better."

Logan smiled at her. "That's because I am better. She's back."

"Who's back?" Syl was confused. "Your message was kind of unclear on that point. What's going down, Logan?"

"Max. She's back. She didn't die. They transplanted her heart…" Logan stopped suddenly, remembering exactly whose heart Max now had. "Damn."

"What, Logan?"                                                  

"I'm sorry. I've just been so happy to have Max back that I forgot."

"Logan, you're not making a whole lot of sense here. Sit down and start at the beginning." 

Logan dropped into one of the chairs and Syl perched on the railing, waiting for him to go on.

"When we left her in the woods, they picked her up and brought her back into the facility." Logan paused, thinking about how to continue.

Syl nodded, unsurprised. "I figured they'd do as much. I'm positive Lydecker did too. That's why he left her. So they had organ banks there? Good thing for Max they had an X5 heart available."

"The thing is they didn't have one. Not in the organ banks."

Syl was staring at him intensely now, "Go on."

"They brought Zack in as well. He was injured but not seriously. He was there when they decided to harvest Max's organs. He shot himself in the head so they would take his heart for Max." Logan stopped and waited for Syl to take in the story. She was silent, face impassive.

Finally she sighed, "Leave it to Zack. Sometimes I think that underneath all that die-hard military attitude he had the softest heart of us all."

The two were quiet for a moment and then Syl shook it off, and looked at Logan with curiosity. "So what's the problem? Max obviously got out and came home. Why the secret meeting with me?"

"I'm not sure. Something doesn't feel right to me." 

Syl cut straight to the heart of Logan's unease. "You think she's been re-indoctrinated? Then why would she be out here and not back there with Brin?" 

"I don't know. I do know that she doesn't remember me. At least she doesn't seem to."

"Not at all?"

"Not as anything more than a casual friend."

"Logan, you know about the Manticore memory techniques don't you? She probably made herself forget about Eyes Only and other things in order to protect you. Thing is there are degrees of forgetting, and each person uses the techniques in their own way. They're an art not a science." Syl's voice was gentle.

"I know a little bit about them, and it's pretty obvious that she used them. But there's more to it that just that. I can't quite put my finger on it, but somehow she doesn't seem right. For one thing, neither Original Cindy or I can get the details out of her of how exactly she escaped from Manticore. She just keeps saying she doesn't want to talk about it."

Syl cut to the heart of the matter, "What do you want me to do?"

"When I called you a couple of days ago I was hoping you could tell me how to help her remember me. Now I'm not sure." Logan looked at her, clearly at a loss.

"Here's the deal then." Syl's brow was furrowed as she thought. "I'll try to come up with some ideas on how to break through to her. At the same time I'm going to stay close by and keep surveillance on your place, especially when she's around."

"My place?" Logan looked at her in surprise.

"Logan, did you ever think that if Max has been re-indoctrinated you might be the target? Eyes Only has been hot and heavy on the trail of Manticore the last few months. I'm surprised they haven't come after him already." Syl looked at him with sympathy in her eyes.

"You think Max is here to…kill me?" Logan looked at her grimly. "Then why hasn't she done it already?"

"I said Eyes Only, not Logan Cale. If Max made herself forget that you're Eyes Only, you'd be safe unless she figured it out. When and if she does find it out, it's going to be a test of whether the conditioning they've given her can win out over her feelings for you. That's why I'm going to stick close to you until we find out exactly what's going down with her."

Logan was silent.

Syl reached out and took Logan's hand. "Logan it'll come right. Max cares too much about you to let Manticore win. It'll be tricky, but I gotta believe we can get her back." She paused, "They've already gotten three of my brothers and sisters. They can't have Max as well."

Logan nodded grimly. "Thanks…sis." He squeezed her hand gently.

Syl smiled at him. "Lets get to work. There's a lot you need to know."

**End of Chapter Eight**


	10. Chapter Nine

**Smoke & Mirrors by Star24**

**Disclaimer: **_Dark Angel and its characters are property of Twentieth Century Fox and James Cameron and Charles Eglee. This original story is property and copyright 2003 Star24._

**______________________________________________________________**

**Chapter Nine**

**Fogle**** **Towers********

Max sat in front of Logan's computers with a look of intense concentration on her face. She typed in commands on his keyboard, and then waited impatiently for files to open up for her. So far the only thing she had found was his personal financial records.  She let out a soft whistle as a file that listed detailed offshore account balances opened in front of her eyes. ****

"Damn. He really is loaded. Wonder how I did actually meet him?" she muttered to herself, sitting back for a minute, her brow wrinkled in thought as she searches for the memory.****

_The two of them are standing in the dining room of the apartment. _****

_Logan sends her a look, "I haven't been able to get you off my mind."_

_ "You need to get out more," she responds, not falling for his practiced charm._

_He just smiles, "Come here. I want to show you something." _

_He walks over to an ornate mirror that is hanging on one of the walls and Max follows him. She stands in front of it, and __Logan__ is standing close behind her, almost touching her. _

_Max looks at the mirror and then at the two of them, reflected in it, "American, neoclassic, gold leaf detail, late 1800s. I could probably fence it for two or three grand."_

_Logan reaches around and touches her chin, "No, I meant this.  Probably the most singularly beautiful face I've ever seen." _

_She leans back towards him playing the game, "Expensive gifts, surprise late-night visits, over-the-top flattery...Do you always come on this strong?" _

_His voice is husky as he replies softly, "Only when I meet someone I have to know everything about…"_

The computer beeped softly and Max came back to where she was. There was a look of speculation on her face and she glanced around the apartment, looking for the mirror of her vision. Not seeing it, she shrugged and went back to working on the computer.

An hour later she sat back in frustration. Despite her best efforts, she hadn't managed to bring up any of the Eyes Only files that she knew had to be somewhere on the computers in front of her.  
  


"Gotta hand it to him, he's good. Guess it's on to Plan B." 

She touched the comm unit in her ear, activating it, and then spoke.  "Subject's computers are inaccessible. It's time to activate the contingency plan." She nodded in satisfaction at the response, then pulled the comm out of her ear and shoved it in her pocket.  After making sure the computers were exactly as they had been when she had arrived, she got up from the desk chair and began to wander around the apartment.

As she walked, she paused occasionally to run her fingers gently over various objects, studying them with interest. 

"You wouldn't be trying to rob the place again would you, Max?" 

Max turned at the sound of Logan's voice, mentally berating herself for letting him return without her noticing his entrance. 

Logan stood there smiling at her, but there was something in his eyes that gave her pause.

"Last time I tried that, I seem to remember taking a dive out of a window," she quipped. The words came easily and she wondered where that memory came from.

"You remember that?" Logan studied her intensely.

"Yeah…I guess I do." Max looked at him. "Shouldn't I?"

"What else do you remember about us, Max?"

"We're…friends… aren't we?" Her look was one of honest confusion. 

"You tell me what we are, Max." 

Logan had moved closer and they were separated only by inches. Max stared up at him, caught by the intensity of his look. Something seemed to snap in Logan, and his hands went out to her, pulling her face to his. He kissed her, devouring her mouth like a starving man. Max didn't resist and her hands went up to his face as she returned the kiss. 

When they broke apart they just stared at each other.  Max opened her mouth to say something, but just then the phone began to shrill insistently.

Logan hesitated, but as the phone continued to ring he turned and strode into his office.

"Hello." He glanced out to see where Max was, but she had wandered over to the windows and was staring out of them. The set of her back was rigid and her hands were clenched at her sides.

Logan dropped into his desk chair and grabbed a pad and pen, and began to scribble rapidly. "When? Who? Got it. That's only four hours from now. Not much time to do anything. I'll let him know but I can't make any promises. Thanks for the heads up."

He hung up the phone. "Damn," he muttered. After glancing at Max once more, he picked it up and rapidly punched in another number.

"Matt. Logan here. We have a situation, a planned hit. It's on for tonight at the Crystal Palace Hotel, the Children's Hope Foundation fundraiser. The target is Judge Jergens. What can you do?"  He listened, a look of frustration running across his face. "I understand. Well, give it your best shot. Thanks."

When he hung up he ran his fingers through his hair. There was a frown on his face. 

"Logan?" Max was standing next to him, looking down at him. "I couldn't help overhearing."

Logan just looked at her.

"Sounds like you could use some help?"

"Max, do you mean…?" Logan stared at her, hope dawning in his eyes.

"I used to help you with this stuff, didn't I? You and… Eyes Only." 

"You remember?" 

"Sort of," she answered vaguely, with a smile. "What's going down?"

"Are you really sure you want to do this?"

"I'm sure. Now tell me the plan."

**End of Chapter Nine**


	11. Chapter Ten

**Smoke & Mirrors by Star24**

**Disclaimer: **_Dark Angel and its characters are property of Twentieth Century Fox and James Cameron and Charles Eglee. This original story is property and copyright 2003 Star24._

**______________________________________________________________**

**Chapter Ten**

**The ****Crystal**** **Palace****** Pavilion, Sector 9**

The Children's Hope Foundation, Annual Charity Ball had just ended, and the street outside was crowded with vehicles as the attendees headed home. Outside the hotel entrance, a man and a woman stood conversing under the canopy that extended from the entrance to the street. ****

"Thank you so much for all of your support of the Foundation, Judge Jergens. You have always been a true friend to our cause."

The judge smiled, "Research that may someday find a cure for genetic disease is very personal to me, Miranda. Ever since my granddaughter was born with…"

His words were interrupted as several news reporters rushed up to them. They pushed their microphones toward him and clamored for some words from him about the upcoming election. The judge sighed and turned to answer their questions.

On a roof across the street a dark figure took aim with a rifle zeroing its sight onto the judge. As her fingers began to squeeze the trigger, Max hurtled out of the darkness, taking her down.  The shot went wide, and one of the reporters who were clustered around the judge, fell to the ground.

The sniper jumped easily to her feet and came into fighting stance. Max had done the same and the two circled each other looking for an opening. Tiring of the game, the assassin kicked out, hitting Max hard in the chest, knocking her backwards. Max staggered, but she regained her balance and with blinding speed she was on her opponent.  

For several moments the two exchanged kicks and blows, neither one seeming to have an advantage over the other. Finally, Max saw an opening and she jumped high in the air, twisting as she did so, and came down behind her opponent. She grabbed the other woman around her neck and slowly squeezed. Her opponent's hands came up and she tried to pull Max's hands off her neck but she was unsuccessful.

"Let up. I don't want to kill you. There's been enough of a show for anyone watching." Max hissed.  Even when her opponent ceased to struggle, Max continued to choke her until she went limp. Letting the limp body drop to the rooftop, Max reached into her opponent's pocket and pulled out a computer disk. She stuck the disk in her pocket and quickly left the scene, leaving the rifle lying next to her unconscious opponent.

On the street below someone had caught sight of the struggle, and the news crews turned in an attempt to film what was happening above. Police were already on their way to the rooftop, and only seconds after Max departed, they burst onto the scene. They found the unconscious body of the sniper and her weapon, but Max was long gone.

**Fogle**** **Towers********

Logan paced impatiently as he waited for some word from Max.  Syl watched from her perch on the back of his couch, smiling as he checked his watch yet again.

"Logan, that's only the twentieth time you've checked your watch in the last 15 minutes," she laughed.

"The fundraiser let out half an hour ago. She should have checked in by now."

"She's an X5. I'm sure she's fine."

"Syl, I'm positive there are Manticore assassins involved in this. Max may not have as easy of a time as she thinks. I wish she'd taken a gun." He continued to pace. 

Syl laughed, "Max and a gun? Never happen."

The television set suddenly caught Logan's eye and he picked up the remote and turned up the volume.

_"…the would-be assassin has been taken into custody. Judge Jergens, who appears to have been the intended victim, is fine and was escorted home by a security detail. The reporter who was shot, is in critical but stable condition at __Metro__ _Medical___ _Center___, and we expect an update on her condition shortly. Police have not released any details about the identity of the shooter but sources tell us that it was a female in her early twenties. They are also continuing to search for a second person spotted on the scene, the extent of whose involvement is not yet clear…"_

Logan sucked in a breath and looked at Syl, worry in his eyes. As he was about to speak his cell phone trilled and he quickly opened it.

"Hello? Max. Thank god. You're okay. Yeah I saw the news, and for a minute I thought it had gone sideways and they'd picked you up….Sure. I'm not going anywhere." He closed the phone and looked at Syl. "She's on her way here. You better get out of sight."

"I'll head to the roof. I've got the comm – I can listen in. I've got your back in case there's any trouble." Syl gave him a brief smile as she headed for the back service exit from his apartment, the one leading to the building stairwell. "Be careful, Logan."

**Manticore**

Elizabeth Renfro sat at her desk talking on the telephone.

"We have an operative in action as we speak. Eyes Only has been located and she is in the process of obtaining access to his files. The operation should be complete tonight and she will then eliminate him, and return to base with all of his information." 

She paused for a moment, listening "No, I don't believe that she has given us that information yet, but she hasn't been in a position for secure communications. No sir, I'm positive she won't double cross us. X5-452's re-conditioning was entirely successful, I'm confident. We used new techniques, there's no way she could have resisted them. She'd shoot her own mother without blinking an eye. If she had one, that is." Renfro hung up with an evil laugh and sat back smiling to herself. 

In the last six months she had re-acquired two of the renegade X5's and tonight Eyes Only would go down. Her star at Manticore was definitely on the rise. She glanced at the clock and reached over and shut down her computer. She buzzed her administrative assistant and left orders that she was to be called if any communication was received from X5-452.  That done, she switched off her office lights and headed to her quarters.****

**End of Chapter Ten**


	12. Chapter Eleven

**Smoke & Mirrors by Star24**

**Disclaimer: **_Dark Angel and its characters are property of Twentieth Century Fox and James Cameron and Charles Eglee. This original story is property and copyright 2003 Star24._

**______________________________________________________________**

**Chapter Eleven**

**Fogle****Towers******

Logan was working at his computers when Max arrived, and there was the aroma of something cooking in the air.****

Max sniffed appreciatively, "Smells good enough to eat."****

"I thought you might be hungry after the mission. It's no big deal, just a thank you for helping out. Looks like my tip was right. Judge Jergens would have been a dead man if not for you tonight." He swiveled his chair around and smiled at her.****

Max shrugged, "Whatever. I needed the exercise anyway. Oh I almost forgot…"She reached into a pocket and pulled out a computer disk. "I took this from the assassin. Thought there might be something on it you could use."****

Logan took the disk from her and placed it next to his pc. "This can wait until after we eat."  

Max looked like she was about to protest, but she refrained and quietly followed Logan as he stood and walked out to the kitchen.****

When they finished eating, Logan didn't head to the computers, but instead went into the living room and stood staring out of the window. Max followed and watched for a few minutes.****

"Aren't you going to load the disk and see what's on it?"****

"I think it can wait until the morning. I'm kind of beat. In fact, I think I'm going to turn in. You can crash in the guest room if you don't want to deal with the curfew. The Sector Police might be a bit jumpy tonight." His voice was detached, almost dismissive.

"There might be important information on there. Maybe information on another assassination. Do you really think you should wait?" Max's tone was insistent and Logan turned to look at her curiously.****

"It'll keep. Even if there was something else going to go down tonight, there's not much we could do about it."

"So you really aren't going to load the disk tonight?" 

"I just said that, Max." 

"Then I guess I have no choice in the matter. I'm sorry Logan."  Max's tone had changed and he looked down to see her holding a gun on him. "Let's take a walk into your computer room where you _are going to load that disk _now_."_

Logan's tone was level as he met her stare, "Max, would you like to tell me what the hell is going on here? Since when do you do guns? And since when do you pull a gun on me?"

"I've done guns since I was about four years old. As to why pull a gun on you, that's simple, Logan, or should I say, Eyes Only? Manticore wants the information on your computers and that disk is going to give it to us. You're going to load it for me and then you're going to open up the Informant Net files. Now."

"After I do that what happens? Are you going to use that gun on me once you have what you want?"

"Eyes Only can't be allowed to continue his crusade against Manticore. I know we were friends before, but this time you went after the wrong people. I'm sorry, but I have my orders." Her voice was cold and detached, and Logan felt a cold chill moving down his spine.

Max motioned with the gun and Logan moved in front of her towards his computer room. As they reached the entrance to the room there was a soft thump behind them, and Max whirled to be met by a swift kick from Syl, who had dropped down through the skylight. The gun went flying out of Max's hand, and the two X5s stood face to face. Logan stepped back out of the way of the women, as they began to slowly circle each other, each one looking for an opening.

"So Max, do you remember me by any chance?" Syl asked casually.

"Should I?" Max sneered at her.

"I would think you might, since we spent every day together for the first nine years of our lives."

"So you're another renegade? Why stay out here in the cold? Why not come back with me? Things are a lot better in there than out here in this screwed up world."

As Max spoke, she kicked out and knocked Syl back into the partition. Syl quickly recovered and lashed back at Max, landing a hard strike to her chest.  Max staggered and Syl followed up with a sweep kick taking out Max's legs and sending her to the floor. Syl launched herself at her but Max rolled to the side, and as Syl came down, Max quickly straddled her back, grabbing her hands and pulling them behind her.

"You've been out in the world too long, without the benefit of any good training exercises it seems." Max laughed as she sat on Syl's hands and reached for her neck. "I'd like to take you back but my orders are no delays, and you're too much of a delay. Sorry."

"Max! Don't."  The tone of command in Logan's voice startled Max, and she paused for just a second. That minute hesitation was enough to allow Syl to throw Max off of her, and jump back to her feet.  Max started after her, but once again she was stopped by Logan's voice.

"Max, I don't want to use this on you, but I will if I have to." 

Max turned to see Logan holding her own gun leveled at her. Something in his eyes told her that he wasn't lying about being willing to use it. Syl went to stand next to him, ready to stop her if she made a move to take the gun away from him. Max didn't really believe Logan would shoot to kill her, but training dictated that she retreat for the present and wait for another chance to complete her mission.

"You win this round," Max shrugged as Syl cautiously moved toward her, taking care not to get between Max and the gun. When she reached her, she pulled Max's hands behind her back and secured them with a pair of handcuffs. She pushed Max over to the couch and down onto it. Logan tossed her a piece of rope and Syl quickly bound Max's ankles then pushed her into a horizontal position on the couch. 

"What do we do with her now?" Syl looked at Logan.

"I was hoping you'd have some ideas for me about how to break down her conditioning." The pain in Logan's eyes was evident as he looked over at Max who was glaring back at the two of them.

"It's not going to happen." Max spat back at him. "I know who I am and where I belong, and it's not out here. My designation is X5-452. Max, as you call her, is dead and she isn't coming back."

Syl ignored Max and touched Logan's hand reassuringly. "I'm still trying to get in touch with some of the others. Psyops was never my strong point, but Krit or Zane might know more than I do. Let me work on it, Logan. There has to be a way."

"In the meantime, I'm going to trash that disk. No telling what's on it, but it's not going into my drive that's for sure." Logan walked over to the computer room and picked up the disk Max had brought to him. As Max continued to shoot daggers at him from her eyes, he picked up a piece of equipment and quickly ran it over the disk. Then he brought the disk into his kitchen where he dropped it into his sink. He ran water over it and then shoved it down his garbage disposal. There was a harsh grinding noise followed by silence.

"Whoa. Grind up heavy duty trash normally, Logan?" Syl asked.

"It's an industrial strength shredder and disposal unit. There are times when certain information needs to be disposed of safely. The first thing I did was to wipe the disk but I don't want to take any chances…"

"Yeah, I don't blame you."

"I'm going to hit the sack. Will Max be okay where she is for tonight?" Logan asked.

"She's not going anywhere. I'm going to use your guest room and make those calls, if that's okay with you?"

"Go for it."

Syl nodded and headed off to the guest room. 

* * * *

Logan walked over and looked down at Max as she lay on the couch. Kneeling down, so he was at eye level with her, he reached out and gently brushed her hair back, away from her face. 

"So now what?" she snarled at him. "You can't keep me here forever. Even with your pet X5 renegade in there."

"Max, don't you remember anything at all about…us?" Logan's eyes caught hers and seemed to drill into her very soul. Max shivered and turned her head away. He reached out and took her face between his hands, turning her to face him once again.  

"You saved my life so many times, and I saved yours as well. Don't you remember jumping off the roof of the Steinlitz Hotel after me when Darius' goons threw me off of it? Or the time Bronck was about to kill both me and Matt Sung, and you came blazing in like an avenging angel to the rescue?"

Max stared at him stonily, refusing to answer.

Logan tried another tack. "Then what about this, Max, _Forever eyes dark. Somebody's angel._" His voice was soft as he recited the words to her.

There was a faint flicker in her eyes but she remained stubbornly silent. 

Logan sighed. "Have it your way. But I swear to you Max, I'm going to _make_ you remember me --remember us -- remember _this_." With that, he leaned down and caught her lips in a long kiss, cradling her face between his hands so that she couldn't turn away from him. After a few moments he pulled back. "Good night, Max."  He rose and left the room, leaving Max staring after him.

* * * *

Syl jumped up as the first rays of dawn washed across her face. She had spent several hours the night before talking to her siblings. They had suggested several techniques that she and Logan might use to try to break through to Max, and she was anxious to get started. She didn't know if Max had compromised their position, but she was going to recommend to Logan that they all move to a safe house as the first order of business. No sense in taking any chances.

"Good morning, sunshine," she quipped as she moved into the living room and glanced at the couch. It was empty. The handcuffs lay open on the floor, and the frayed remnants of the rope lay next to them.

"Damn." Syl raced down the hall to Logan's bedroom and flung open the door. It was as she feared. The room was empty; the bedclothes flung on the floor as if there had been a brief struggle. The exo-skeleton was missing from its stand in the corner. 

Syl pulled out her cell phone and quickly dialed a number. "It's me again. We have a situation. Max is gone and she's taken Logan with her…"

**End of Smoke & Mirrors**

**To be continued…**

**_A/N:__ **This is the end of the first part of my AS2. Before you all throw rotten tomatoes at me, rest assured that the next part is already written and just finishing up being beta'd. Look for a story titled "Breakdown" which I will start to post in the next day or so.  Hope you're all enjoying the ride.**_**

**_Star _**


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